Adena Fayette Medical Center (AFMC), formerly known as Fayette County Memorial Hospital, announced Friday that it has begun mailing letters regarding an email security incident to affected patients.
On May 17 as part of a comprehensive review of its email environment, AFMC identified an unauthorized login to an employee’s email account that occurred on Nov. 11, 2020, while the facility was Fayette County Memorial Hospital, according to AFMC officials.
Officials said they conducted a detailed investigation with the assistance of outside cyber-security firms to determine how the incident occurred and what information was contained in the email account.
AFMC has no evidence that anyone’s personal information was actually viewed by an unauthorized person, or that it has been misused. However, in an abundance of caution, AFMC reviewed the emails and attachments that may have been accessible within the email account, according to officials.
AFMC determined that this information included some patients’ names, dates of birth and limited clinical information related to care through AFMC. In limited instances, the email account also included patients’ Social Security numbers; however, financial account and payment card information were not included.
AFMC is mailing letters to patients whose information may have been involved in this incident. AFMC is also providing individuals whose Social Security number was involved with complimentary credit monitoring and identity theft protection services. Patients are encouraged to review statements from their healthcare providers, and to contact their provider immediately if they see any services they did not receive.
AFMC officials said they take the privacy and security of their patients’ information very seriously, and regrets any inconvenience or concern this incident may cause. To help prevent something like this from happening again, AFMC has enhanced its email security tools.
Patients with questions can call the dedicated call center at (877) 227-6034, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Eastern Time.
